There are times when making the decision to be a travel nurse isn’t a one-person decision. In a blog last week, Brad Crawford gave his perspective on what it was like to travel with his wife Stasha, a travel nurse. In the second part of this series, Stasha discusses her side of the story from the travel nurse perspective:

Talk about your decision to become a travel nurse despite already having a stable full-time job:

It was scary to leave the security of my full-time job in pursuit of traveling, especially in this economy. But travel nursing was something I have always had an interest in.  Even though I loved my job and the people I worked with, I love adventure and the opportunity to expand my knowledge and skills. Once I had gained enough experience and felt confident as a nurse, fear turned into excitement and we were both anxious to get started.

What were your thoughts on how becoming a travel would impact Brad? What were the options that went through your mind in terms of that?

Brad knew traveling was something that I had always wanted to try.  He was very supportive and perhaps the driving force behind our final decision to start traveling. Brad and I have that perfect balance in our relationship, I worry to the extreme and he is calm and collective about everything. I knew for him this was a dream come true as well.  He would be leaving behind a job that had become mundane and would finally be able to pursue something that he enjoyed.  Overall, our decision to travel was a win/win situation for both of us. There was never an option of me traveling by myself. If we were doing it, we were doing it together.

What is important to you as a travel nurse going to different locations? How does Brad’s research into a location tie into a place that you are considering?

With every potential job, Brad and I discuss it together before accepting an assignment.  I tend to look for the nursing aspect of things like:

• How many beds are in the ER/hospital?

• Is it a trauma center?

• Shift? Wages? Stipend?

• What is the nurse/patient ratio?

I tend to be a little overly worried about finding my next assignment. Sometimes, I must admit, I get anxious and want to accept the next position I am offered regardless of all the things that are important to us. Brad is the sensible one and usually will bring me back to reality by pointing out things like high crime rates or if the assignment is in an area that seems boring.  So far, we have collaborated and made good decisions. Neither of us can say that we really disliked a location or assignment.

While on a travel nursing assignment, what are the greatest benefits of having Brad around? Anything funny he does to bug you?

My schedule is generally three 12 hour shifts a week. While I work, Brad is home by himself working on our website, TravelNurseHelp and keeping up with house chores.  The best part is he loves to cook so it’s nice to not have to come home and worry about fixing a meal. As good at cooking as he is, he’s not so good at dishes and cleaning. His idea of cleaning off the coffee table is moving everything on it to the kitchen table. But I’ll let him pass since he’s such a good cook.  :)

Any other tips for nurses considering traveling with their spouse?

When traveling with your spouse, make sure they understand that we all need time to ourselves and we need our space to do our own personal things. So he/she must respect that and not be offended when you are in need of some quality “me time.” That also goes the other way too. When all you want to do is relax after a long day at work, try to realize your partner has been home alone all day and is ready to spend time together.

As a travel nurse, Stasha Crawford has had the opportunity to travel coast-to-coast along with her husband Brad. While she concerns herself with the “nursing” issues, Brad likes to focus on the travel aspect. Together they have created TravelNurseHelp, a website designed to combine much of the info a travel nurse needs in one place.